Kitchen Before and After... Featuring Glazed Antiqued Cabinets!

When we bought our house in 2009 one of the things we really hated was the kitchen.... which is kind of funny beause that's where we spend the most time, basically the most important room in the house!   We knew though, that it had great potential, it was just really, really ugly. 

Here is the sales picture on the internet when our house was on the market... (this is not my old decor!!)

Look at those cabinets, what color are they supposed to be??  Anyone... Anyone?  Bueller.. Bueller?;)

They were such a hideous color.  The previous owner said they were "white-washed",  ummm, no.  They were kind of pickled with a pinkish under-tone, just awful. 

The other very bad thing going on in the kitchen were the floors.  It's hard to tell by the pictures but they were linoleum that was supposed to look like tile.  They were a grey color that really hid the dirt. They hid the dirt by looking dirty all the time!!  Yuck! 

The first thing we did before we moved in was replace the flooring with dark cherry bamboo hard wood.  You can see close up pictures of that here.  This made such a difference and even made the cabinets look  a little better, but they still had that weird pink tinge to them, they SO had to GO!! 

The previous owner took most of the appliances and the remaining two weren't in great shape so we replaced them all with new stainless steel, this really brightened it up and gave it a sleek, modern feel. 

We then changed out the light fixtures, hanging a nice black chandelier over the kitchen table and some DIY pendant lights (will blog those soon) over the island.  Another huge improvement.  The kitchen was really dark and having the extra bulbs in there with the chandalier and pendants really warmed it up. 

The biggest improvement was re-doing the kitchen cabinets.  We I decided to glaze them with an antique finish (hubby voted for plain white, sorry babe). 

There are a few more things that we'd like to do in the kitchen when the budget allows... crown moulding, adding a backsplash, and granite or quartz countertops.

Finally came the decor... what I love to do. :) 

Here is the After:

Another view...

I also have to show off my kitchen rug that I am in love with. 

 

I should also note that our kitchen remodel will probably be the most expensive thing I ever do on my blog.  I am Chic on a Shoestring Decorating because I am on a shoestring budget, this house was such a great deal that I got to do the upgrades on the kitchen.  Don't let this "pricey" post scare you away! ;)

I also wanted to share that I feel the antiqued glaze was the right choice for the cabinets as I saw the same look in a book my little one got for Christmas....

Picture courtesy of Sesame Street

  

How can you go wrong if your kitchen resembles the kitchen of Cookie Monster, Elmo, and the Count??  Check out their sweet antiqued cabinets...  HA! :)

Update : After attempting a giant-detailed-tons-of-photos too-long blog post about my glazing and antique-ing kitchen cabinet techniques I've decided to write an e-book!

I am sharing all my secrets of the whole process including how to avoid sanding, leaving your cabinet doors on while painting (yes, you can!) Plus, the exact colors, brands and products I use (not, just go to the paint store and buy some glaze).

Please "follow me" or bookmark my site to look for the release date by the end of 2012!

I'm linked to Thrifty Decor Chic, Between Naps on the Front Porch,  Cottage Instincts , Making the World Cuter, The Shades of Pink, My Frugal Family, The Faded Charm Cottage and It's so very Cheri.

Also Serenity Now Show Me the Progress!Centsational Girl Paint Party

Brooklyn Limestone's Real Rooms, Thrifty Decor Chick